Zach Edey and Purdue power their way into NCAA title game, beating N.C. State 63-50
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) There was more than one team that came to the Final Four with a dream - more than one team hoping to add its own unforgettable chapter to college basketball's colorful history book.
Zach Edey and Purdue have been thinking big all year, and after snuffing out North Carolina State’s magical season with a 63-50 victory Saturday, it's the Boilermakers who find themselves a win away from the program’s first NCAA title.
“It's the one we've been talking about all year,” said Edey, the 7-foot-4 center who played all 40 minutes and finished with 20 points and 12 rebounds.
For the past three weeks, though, a lot of the country has been caught up in N.C. State. The Wolfpack, 11th-seeded dreamers, were dialing up a classic reboot of 1983, when they won nine straight postseason games to capture an unlikely title that left their frenetic coach, Jim Valvano, running onto the court looking for someone to hug.
In 2024, the Wolfpack went 9 for 9 under similar must-win conditions to get this far.
Only this time, they came two wins short of glory.
“Didn’t get the big one,” said N.C. State guard DJ Horne, who finished with 20 points. “But it’s definitely a big accomplishment in my career.”
N.C. State aside, some might call this run by top-seeded Purdue as inconceivable as anything in college hoops this year.
This is a program well-versed in the art of disappointment and missed expectations. Edey retuned for his senior season and led the Boilermakers to the Final Four for the first time since 1980 - one season after they became the second No. 1 seed to fall in the first round.
The Boilermakers (34-4), top-seeded again, will play Connecticut, an 86-72 winner over Alabama in the second semifinal, for the title on Monday night.
“The reason I came back is for playing games like this,” Edey said. “It's the reason I’m playing college basketball for four years, to finally get this game, big-time.”
N.C. State (26-15) poked and jabbed at Edey and gave him fits through the entire slugfest of a game. He still dominated the battle of big men against 6-9, 275-pound Wolfpack forward DJ Burns Jr., who labored to eight points and four assists.
Burns wasn't the only one having trouble finding the basket. The N.C. State team that outscored Duke 55-37 after halftime in the Elite Eight - the team that had, in fact, outscored seven of nine opponents in the second half since its season became a win-or-go-home affair - shot 28.6% over the last 20 minutes this time.
It didn't help that guard Michael O'Connell pulled up lame with a bad left hamstring halfway through the first half. More than that, though, the Wolfpack had too many great looks at open shots that simply would not fall.
“The biggest difference is that some of the shots we normally make we didn’t make,” Wolfpack coach Kevin Keatts said. “It kind of got away from us a little bit.”
It made for some ugly hoops. At one stretch early in the second half, the teams missed 10 straight shots between them.
“Obviously it was one of those grinder games," Purdue coach Matt Painter said.
The shooting troubles cut both ways. Purdue's second-leading scorer this season, Braden Smith, finished 1 for 9 for three points (but also had eight rebounds and six assists). For all his troubles, though, he put the final dagger in N.C. State’s season.
It came near the end of a stretch during which Horne shot an airball and Edey swatted N.C. State guard Jayden Taylor’s shot out of the paint, while on the other end, Fletcher Loyer and then Smith made back-to-back 3s.
It was part of an 8-0 run that pushed Purdue’s lead to 20. The only drama left was whether the Wolfpack would surpass their season low in scoring of 52 points. They did not.
Edey, the back-to-back AP Player of the Year, grabbed his 10th rebound with 8:52 left to secure his 29th double-double of the season. But this was no easy stroll through the paint for the nation’s leading scorer. N.C. State finished with eight steals. Most came from guards sagging down on Edey and swatting it away.
Burns did OK on Edey. Wolfpack forward Ben Middlebrooks did even better.
In the end, Purdue's big man was just too hard to deal with. On defense, he blocked two shots, altered about five others and his inside presence played into N.C. State’s 36% shooting night. On offense, he went 9 for 14 from the field. After the game, he accepted congratulations from none other than Shaquille O'Neal.
“He’s a tall guy,” Burns said. “If you let him get to his spots, he’s going to make his shots. We cleaned it up, but it was a little too late.”
And so, a team that had a four-game losing streak and a looming date with the couch before the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament came close to living out a dream.
Instead, that chance belongs to Purdue.
“It’s everything we’ve worked for, everything we thought about,” Loyer said. “A lot of late nights where you can’t even sleep because you’re thinking about it.”
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Time | Team | Play | Score | |
---|---|---|---|---|
20:00 | Mohamed Diarra vs. Zach Edey (Trey Kaufman-Renn gains possession) | |||
19:39 | Lance Jones misses three point jump shot | |||
19:37 | Trey Kaufman-Renn offensive rebound | |||
19:27 | +2 | Trey Kaufman-Renn makes two point turnaround hook shot | 0-2 | |
19:09 | DJ Burns Jr. misses two point turnaround jump shot | |||
19:07 | Braden Smith defensive rebound | |||
19:03 | DJ Burns Jr. personal foul (Braden Smith draws the foul) | |||
18:43 | +2 | Zach Edey makes two point hook shot | 0-4 | |
18:28 | +2 | DJ Horne makes two point reverse layup (DJ Burns Jr. assists) | 2-4 | |
18:12 | Zach Edey misses two point bank hook shot | |||
18:10 | Zach Edey offensive rebound | |||
18:05 | Zach Edey misses two point jump shot | |||
18:03 | Lance Jones offensive rebound | |||
18:00 | +3 | Fletcher Loyer makes three point jump shot (Braden Smith assists) | 2-7 | |
17:45 | Michael O'Connell turnover (bad pass) (Lance Jones steals) | |||
17:22 | Braden Smith misses two point running jump shot | |||
17:19 | Trey Kaufman-Renn offensive rebound | |||
17:13 | Mohamed Diarra shooting foul (Trey Kaufman-Renn draws the foul) | |||
17:13 | +1 | Trey Kaufman-Renn makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 2-8 | |
17:13 | +1 | Trey Kaufman-Renn makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 2-9 | |
17:01 | DJ Horne misses two point pullup jump shot | |||
16:59 | Zach Edey defensive rebound | |||
16:40 | Fletcher Loyer misses two point stepback jump shot | |||
16:38 | Mohamed Diarra defensive rebound | |||
16:23 | +2 | DJ Horne makes two point pullup jump shot (Ben Middlebrooks assists) | 4-9 | |
16:08 | Braden Smith turnover (back court violation) | |||
16:01 | Ben Middlebrooks turnover (lost ball) (Braden Smith steals) | |||
15:56 | Casey Morsell blocks Braden Smith's two point driving dunk | |||
15:54 | Braden Smith offensive rebound | |||
15:48 | +3 | Lance Jones makes three point jump shot (Fletcher Loyer assists) | 4-12 | |
15:46 | Wolfpack 30 second timeout | |||
15:46 | TV timeout | |||
15:29 | +3 | Michael O'Connell makes three point jump shot (DJ Burns Jr. assists) | 7-12 | |
15:16 | Braden Smith turnover (back court violation) | |||
15:16 | TV timeout | |||
15:06 | DJ Burns Jr. turnover (bad pass) (Braden Smith steals) | |||
14:51 | +2 | Zach Edey makes two point hook shot | 7-14 | |
14:28 | DJ Burns Jr. misses two point turnaround hook shot | |||
14:25 | Ben Middlebrooks offensive rebound | |||
14:13 | +2 | DJ Burns Jr. makes two point turnaround hook shot | 9-14 | |
13:52 | Zach Edey turnover (lost ball) (DJ Horne steals) | |||
13:47 | Michael O'Connell turnover (lost ball) | |||
13:28 | Braden Smith turnover (bad pass) (Casey Morsell steals) | |||
13:21 | Mohamed Diarra misses two point layup | |||
13:18 | Boilermakers defensive rebound | |||
12:57 | +2 | Zach Edey makes two point turnaround hook shot (Braden Smith assists) | 9-16 | |
12:38 | DJ Horne misses two point pullup jump shot | |||
12:36 | Zach Edey defensive rebound | |||
12:20 | Camden Heide misses three point jump shot | |||
12:18 | Jayden Taylor defensive rebound | |||
12:06 | DJ Horne misses three point jump shot | |||
12:04 | Camden Heide defensive rebound | |||
11:49 | Lance Jones misses three point jump shot | |||
11:47 | Mohamed Diarra defensive rebound | |||
11:35 | +2 | Jayden Taylor makes two point cutting layup (DJ Burns Jr. assists) | 11-16 | |
11:15 | +2 | Zach Edey makes two point layup (Braden Smith assists) | 11-18 | |
10:47 | DJ Burns Jr. misses two point jump shot | |||
10:45 | Zach Edey defensive rebound | |||
10:28 | Braden Smith misses three point stepback jump shot | |||
10:26 | DJ Horne defensive rebound | |||
10:19 | Casey Morsell misses three point pullup jump shot | |||
10:17 | Braden Smith defensive rebound | |||
10:10 | +3 | Lance Jones makes three point jump shot (Zach Edey assists) | 11-21 | |
9:50 | +2 | DJ Burns Jr. makes two point driving floating jump shot | 13-21 | |
9:29 | +2 | Zach Edey makes two point turnaround hook shot | 13-23 | |
9:15 | +3 | DJ Horne makes three point jump shot (DJ Burns Jr. assists) | 16-23 | |
8:56 | Lance Jones misses three point jump shot | |||
8:54 | Camden Heide offensive rebound | |||
8:46 | Braden Smith misses three point pullup jump shot | |||
8:44 | DJ Horne defensive rebound | |||
8:22 | Jayden Taylor misses two point stepback jump shot | |||
8:20 | Casey Morsell offensive rebound | |||
8:16 | Casey Morsell misses two point driving layup | |||
8:13 | Zach Edey defensive rebound | |||
7:50 | Braden Smith misses two point pullup jump shot | |||
7:48 | Mohamed Diarra defensive rebound | |||
7:36 | DJ Horne misses three point pullup jump shot | |||
7:34 | Braden Smith defensive rebound | |||
7:16 | +3 | Mason Gillis makes three point jump shot (Braden Smith assists) | 16-26 | |
7:00 | Mohamed Diarra misses three point jump shot | |||
6:58 | Mason Gillis defensive rebound | |||
6:29 | DJ Burns Jr. shooting foul (Zach Edey draws the foul) | |||
6:29 | TV timeout | |||
6:29 | +1 | Zach Edey makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 16-27 | |
6:29 | TV timeout | |||
6:29 | +1 | Zach Edey makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 16-28 | |
6:01 | +2 | Breon Pass makes two point pullup jump shot | 18-28 | |
5:44 | Zach Edey offensive foul (Ben Middlebrooks draws the foul) | |||
5:44 | Zach Edey turnover (offensive foul) | |||
5:33 | +2 | DJ Horne makes two point driving floating jump shot | 20-28 | |
5:11 | Mohamed Diarra blocks Trey Kaufman-Renn's two point hook shot | |||
5:09 | Michael O'Connell defensive rebound | |||
5:05 | +2 | Breon Pass makes two point driving layup (Michael O'Connell assists) | 22-28 | |
4:45 | Fletcher Loyer misses two point driving layup | |||
4:43 | Zach Edey offensive rebound | |||
4:43 | +2 | Zach Edey makes two point tip layup | 22-30 | |
4:27 | DJ Horne misses two point pullup jump shot | |||
4:25 | Braden Smith defensive rebound | |||
4:16 | Braden Smith turnover (bad pass) (Mohamed Diarra steals) | |||
4:11 | Breon Pass misses three point pullup jump shot | |||
4:09 | Ben Middlebrooks offensive rebound | |||
4:09 | Trey Kaufman-Renn personal foul (Ben Middlebrooks draws the foul) | |||
3:54 | +3 | Jayden Taylor makes three point stepback jump shot | 25-30 | |
3:31 | Zach Edey misses two point turnaround bank jump shot | |||
3:29 | Jayden Taylor defensive rebound | |||
3:26 | Jayden Taylor misses three point pullup jump shot | |||
3:24 | Zach Edey defensive rebound | |||
3:24 | TV timeout | |||
3:03 | +2 | Trey Kaufman-Renn makes two point turnaround bank hook shot (Braden Smith assists) | 25-32 | |
2:47 | Mohamed Diarra misses three point jump shot | |||
2:45 | Zach Edey defensive rebound | |||
2:32 | Trey Kaufman-Renn misses two point turnaround hook shot | |||
2:30 | Fletcher Loyer offensive rebound | |||
2:14 | Zach Edey turnover (lost ball) (Jayden Taylor steals) | |||
1:52 | Casey Morsell offensive foul (Fletcher Loyer draws the foul) | |||
1:52 | Casey Morsell turnover (offensive foul) | |||
1:36 | Braden Smith turnover (lost ball) (Ben Middlebrooks steals) | |||
1:27 | +2 | DJ Horne makes two point pullup jump shot | 27-32 | |
1:02 | Ben Middlebrooks personal foul (Zach Edey draws the foul) | |||
0:59 | Braden Smith misses three point stepback jump shot | |||
0:57 | Mohamed Diarra defensive rebound | |||
0:39 | +2 | DJ Horne makes two point stepback jump shot (Ben Middlebrooks assists) | 29-32 | |
0:20 | Boilermakers 30 second timeout | |||
0:09 | +3 | Fletcher Loyer makes three point jump shot (Zach Edey assists) | 29-35 | |
0:01 | Braden Smith personal foul (Jayden Taylor draws the foul) | |||
0:00 | End of period |